Who's on first. What's on second. I don't know is on third. The Orioles can round out their infield by making us wonder who or what is at shortstop. I don't know. They don't know. We've come a long way from the days of Manny Machado, J.J. Hardy, Jonathan Schoop and Chris Davis - with Ryan Flaherty the primary backup. José Iglesias won't be the shortstop in 2021 because the Orioles traded him and the $3.5 million on his contract to the Angels for two minor league pitchers. They're...

The free-agent market has gained a former Orioles starter. Thomas Eshelman cleared waivers yesterday and was outrighted to Triple-A Norfolk. The Orioles announced this morning that he elected free agency rather than remain in their system. Eshelman, 26, has a previous outright assignment, which gives him veto power. The Orioles designated him for assignment on Sept. 2, 2019 while activating Mark Trumbo from the 60-day injured list. The willingness of the Orioles to part with Eshelman this week...

As expected, the Nationals tendered their only two remaining arbitration-eligible players (Juan Soto and Trea Turner) before Wednesday's 8 p.m. deadline. And as expected, a whole bunch of notable names were non-tendered by other clubs and became instant free agents. All told, 59 players were non-tendered, joining an already large list of free agents looking for work during what's expected to be a rough winter for everyone. And though the new additions to the list don't include star-level...

Last night's trade of shortstop José Iglesias was the shocker among a series of moves made by the Orioles. The one transaction that dropped jaws after they picked up his $3.5 million option a month ago. Hanser Alberto was a strong non-tender candidate and the Orioles sent him into the free agent market. They were more inclined to hold onto infielders Yolmer Sánchez and Pat Valaika and reliever Shawn Armstrong. They had no intention of non-tendering outfielders Trey Mancini and Anthony...

The rebuilding of the Orioles was always going to be hard for fans. The non-tender deadline for two straight years has been hard on fans. The trades last year of right-hander Dylan Bundy and infielder Jonathan Villar. The trade last night of shortstop José Iglesias. For a few hours yesterday - after news of an agreement with Yolmer Sánchez - some fans wondered about the possibility of a strong up-the-middle defense of Iglesias and Sánchez. Then the Orioles, as they did with those deals...

The Orioles are interested in negotiating a new contract with infielder Hanser Alberto, who has been non-tendered and allowed to enter the free agent market. The cost in arbitration was too rich for the club, but they'd like to bring him back on a friendlier deal and expect to maintain contact with his agent. They're also going to be busy finding a replacement for José Iglesias, who was traded tonight to the Angels for minor league pitchers Garrett Stallings and Jean Pinto. Executive vice...

The Nationals tonight tendered contracts to Juan Soto and Trea Turner, their only remaining unsigned arbitration-eligible players, in a couple of entirely expected-but-required transactions. All Major League Baseball clubs had until 8 p.m. Eastern time to either offer 2021 contracts to their players who are eligible for arbitration this winter (generally those with more than three but fewer than six years of big league service time) or non-tender them and let them become free agents. There was...

The Orioles did more today than decide the contract status of their remaining arbitration-eligible players. They also traded shortstop José Iglesias to the Angels after picking up the $3.5 million option on his contract a month ago. An industry source confirmed the trade. The return for Iglesias is unknown, but it marks the second deal between the teams around the non-tender deadline. The Orioles sent pitcher Dylan Bundy to the Angels a year ago for four minor league pitchers, including...

2020 was not the breakout season Carter Kieboom might have hoped for, but that does not mean that the Nationals third baseman did not make some positive strides. Kieboom hit .202 in 99 at-bats this past season, with one double and nine RBIs. The 23-year-old played in 33 games, three times more than he played in back in 2019. He showed a penchant for improved patience, seeing 4.39 pitchers per at-bat. In 2019, he saw only 3.91 pitches per time up. The big statistic that jumped out was his...

The Orioles whittled their list of unsigned arbitration-eligible players to five this morning by reaching agreement with infielder Yolmer Sánchez on a 2021 contract, according to an industry source. Sánchez is signed for $1 million and waiting to learn whether he's a candidate to start at second or third base. He could land in the utility mix, with his arrival perhaps having a domino effect on the roster. Hanser Alberto could be impacted. Pat Valaika could be impacted. They're also...